A Conversation With David Berkebile

The owner of Georgetown Tobacco reflects on 60 years in the cigar business

David Berkebile, 85, has owned and operated Georgetown Tobacco for more than 60 years. The store, located only about two miles from the White House, is a landmark for cigar smokers in the nation’s capital, one that sells a host of cigar brands both big and small. Berkebile recently had a conversation with Cigar Aficionado executive editor David Savona about how the cigar business has changed over six decades. SAVONA: You opened Georgetown in March, 1964. What inspired you to open a cigar store? BERKEBILE: It was pretty simple. I had a couple of kids and I always wanted to have my own business. I was in the Navy [prior] and I was smoking a pipe, and I decided to open a store. By March, I opened one. I didn’t…

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Cigar Aficionado (Digital) - 1 Issue, March/April 2025

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